


tNS | missing moments

by goldpeak



Category: The Night Shift
Genre: Adoption, Behind the Scenes, Brianna - Freeform, Comfort, Drew Alister - Freeform, Emotional, Family, Family Feels, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Missing Moments, Rick Lincoln - Freeform, The Night Shift - Freeform, mild violence, post episode 3.08
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-21
Updated: 2017-08-27
Packaged: 2018-12-18 01:42:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,847
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11864019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goldpeak/pseuds/goldpeak
Summary: An in-depth retelling of the events leading up to and after Brianna and her foster mom were in the car crash. Behind the scenes, between the episodes, missing moments, fill-in-the-blank style. Based off prompts by "lonelyb1983."-“Please, just let me go! I can get her. Please!” Brianna cries.“Brianna!” the doctor says, and she spins around to look at him. “I’m Dr. Alister. This is Dr. Rivera. How’re you doing?”“My wrist hurts- but she’s still in there!” She yells, lunging away from Dr. Alister’s grip. “Please, you have to go get her!”





	1. The Crash

**Author's Note:**

> As the summary says, this work is based off of prompts by the lovely "lonelyb1983." This is basically a dramatic re-telling of Brianna's story with Drew and Rick, filling in the behind the scenes and the moments we, as an audience, never saw.
> 
> Most of the quotes in the first few chapters are directly from episode 3.08 of the Night Shift, titled "All In." This is following the canon of the show, meaning that most of the actions in the first few chapters follow the plot-line of the actual show. There may be a few inconsistencies, as it's hard to rewrite something like this without basically typing out a glorified script.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

“What size can I get?” Brianna asks, turned to Avery in the front seat of their car. “A large?”

Avery laughs, glancing at the teen briefly, “Sure, honey. What flavor do you want?”

“I think choc-,” Brianna starts, but is cut off when something catches her eye in the road. “Deer!”

Their headlights illuminate the scared animal, frozen in shock in the middle of the lanes. Avery yelps, spinning the steering wheel sharply to the left. The car screeches and they careen off the road- suddenly there’s a loud crash, and before Brianna can even realize what’s happening, she’s suddenly flipping upside-down. She slips right out of her seat, the seatbelt rendered useless- she puts out her arms to catch her and she feels her wrist crunch- she yells.

“Avery?” she cries, looking around. “Avery!”

The windows are all shattered, the car crunched up. Avery is upside-down in her seat, unconscious.

 _911,_ Brianna thinks. _I have to dial 911._

Avery’s phone. Brianna sees it, it must have fallen out the window. It’s laying in the dirt a few feet away from the driver’s side of the car.

Whimpering, Brianna crawls out the shattered window. She reaches for the mobile phone, her bloody fingers grabbing onto it. Staggering to her feet once she’s clear of the vehicle, she dials 911 on the cracked screen.

Brianna starts talking as soon as the receiver clicks, “The car just flipped over- I’m okay- my mom’s still inside! Please send someone to help!”

“Stay calm ma’am, we’re sending an ambulance to your phone’s location. Stay on the line.”

\--

Ten minutes later, the first ambulance arrives followed by a police car. Brianna drops the phone and runs up the side of the ravine to meet them, her head aching and her wrist throbbing.

She waves her arms at the flashing lights, eyes narrowed against the brightness. Two men come running towards her and she points at the car down the ravine. One runs past her and one goes to grab her, but she’s already started to run after the other man.

“Ma’am! Ma’am, you can’t go back down there!” the man who tried to grab her yells, sprinting after her.

He grabs onto her injured wrist and she cries out, twisting away from him- the pain in her wrist increases and she cradles it to her chest. “My mom’s in there!”

“I understand, but you need to give the paramedics room to work,” the man insists.

She stares at the car helplessly, numb as the other man steers her away from the ravine and to the ambulance, where an older woman is standing.

“Hey, honey,” she says, patronizingly, and Brianna grinds her teeth.

“I’m fine!” she yells. “My mom’s down there!”

“I know, love,” the woman soothes, patting her arm. “They’ll get her out. You have to stay here with me.”

\--

Some fifteen minutes later, a helicopter lands in the field. Out of it comes two doctors- they begin to run towards where Brianna is standing near the ambulance. Another paramedic runs alongside them- they’re yelling back and forth but Brianna can’t hear any of their words.

The taller of the two doctors, a man with short-cut hair, leads the way over to her. The other doctor and the paramedic follow behind him.

“Please, just let me go! I can get her. Please!” Brianna cries, struggling against where the woman has both her hands on the girl’s shoulders, holding her back.

“Brianna!” the doctor says, and she spins around to look at him. “I’m Dr. Alister. This is Dr. Rivera. How’re you doing?”

The woman who had been holding her jogs away and then Dr. Alister is the one holding her still. She’s panting, and her eyes flick between both doctors frantically.

“My wrist hurts- but she’s still in there!” She yells, lunging away from the doctor’s grip. “Please, you have to go get her!”

“Okay, hey,” Dr. Alister exclaims, turning the girl back to face him. “Listen, I’m gonna check on your mom right away. Okay?”

Brianna snaps her head to look back at the car, and hears Avery yell again. “She’s not my mom. She’s my foster mom. Please, don’t let her die.”

She can feel tears streaming down her face, stinging the gash on her cheek.

“I’m gonna do everything I can, okay?” Dr. Alister says, reaching over to grab something from his bag.

“No, please!” Brianna breaks away from his grip. “Let me-.”

“Brianna!” Dr. Alister yells, throwing out an arm across her chest to block her. “Shannon! Let’s keep her warm and get her checked out.”

Dr. Alister runs off and Shannon steps forward, both of her hands on Brianna’s shoulders. “Hey, hey, hey. Let’s take a look at your wrist, okay?”

Shannon guides Brianna back against the ambulance’s step and she sits down.

The doctor takes her wrist and flexes it, “Does that hurt?”

Brianna nods distractedly, staring after Dr. Alister.

Everything after that is a blur, up until they start to cut Avery out of the car. Shannon’s kneeling next to Brianna, wrapping something around her wrist, while sparks fly up and Avery screams sound out across the field.

“Brianna, it’s gonna be okay,” Shannon soothes.

Brianna doesn’t believe her.

\--

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading the first chapter! I hope you enjoyed it, and if you did, please leave a kudos or a comment as both of those things prompt me to keep writing as I know at least someone is enjoying my work!
> 
> As school picks back up again I will be quite busy as I'm in multiple AP classes, but I will attempt to update semi-regularly, and at the very least, always on the weekends. Please bear with me if we go through a dry spell of no updates, and I apologize in advance if that ever happens!
> 
> In all seriousness I really enjoy writing for this pairing, these characters, and this fandom- and I don't intend on stopping anytime soon. <3


	2. The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe

They carry Avery up the hill on a stretcher. She’s covered in blood and glass, and unconscious once again. As soon as Brianna sees her, she cries out and tries to run towards her- but the paramedic holding her back prevents that. She watches helplessly as her mom is loaded into the helicopter, the two doctors following after her, before they all take off into the clear night sky.

After that, Brianna remembers being bundled into an ambulance by a random paramedic. Someone presses disinfectant to the cut on her face and she cries out as the cold of it stings.

They arrive at the hospital a few short moments later, and Brianna is led into one of the rooms. The building smells like antiseptic, and the florescent lights burn her eyes. She lets the nurse take her bloody shoes and jacket away, and she’s given a hospital gown to change into.

Someone comes and drops off her backpack, it’s torn up and dirty but she digs inside it until she finds her book, which is miraculously still okay. She reads distractedly while someone stitches up her face, wincing every time the needle pricks her.

Only a few moments after that, a familiar face steps into her room. Dr. Alister.

She looks up from her book and he gives her a smile, which she doesn’t return. He’s holding some sort of splint and some green tape in one hand, and he walks over to kneel next to the bed.

“Hey,” he says. “This is for your wrist.”

She nods, placing the book on the bedside table. She shuffles forward until her legs are dangling over the edge of the bed and he can reach her arm. She holds it out, silent as he fits the splint to it.

“So, I know it’s not the most comfortable thing in the world, but this splint will help your fracture heal,” he says, looking up at her as he wraps the last of the green tape around it.

“What’s going on with my foster mom?” Brianna asks, swallowing heavily. “Is she gonna be okay?”

Dr. Alister hesitates, and Brianna’s heart drops 30 meters.

“...We got our top doctors working on her,” he assures. “So as soon as I know more, I’ll let you know more. I promise.”

Brianna believes him- because, after all, he did promise- and she nods slightly.

“Now, in the meantime, Nina, your social worker, is gonna come hang out with you.” Dr. Alister says, looking up at her.

“Oh, okay,” Brianna says resignedly, averting her gaze from Dr. Alister’s in favor of focusing on something in the distance.

“What’s that? You don’t like her?” Dr. Alister questions, tilting his head curiously.

“No, I do. She’s pretty badass,” she assures, nodding and flicking her gaze back to the doctor. “But you wouldn’t be calling her in unless it was bad news about my foster mom.”

Dr. Alister shakes his head, frowning.

“She always gets called in when it’s bad news,” Brianna says dejectedly, staring at the floor.

“Well, that’s not true,” the doctor insists. “I mean, that’s not the reason we called her.”

Brianna flicks her gaze back up to him.

“She’s just gotta know what’s going on, right?” Dr. Alister shrugs, his features light.

“So, you’re saying my foster mom isn’t going to die?” Brianna questions bluntly.

Taken aback, the doctor stutters, “I’m saying that we don’t know...anything yet. So, we just gotta give those doctors some time. Okay?”

Brianna nods, but doesn’t say anything more.

The doctor reaches for the book on the table by her bed. “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe... I love this book. So, what part are you at?”

“I’m not at a part,” Brianna says.

“You just started reading it? Nice,” the doctor says, before he flips through a few pages.

“No. I’ve read it before.” Brianna shakes her head, glancing at the book. “Like a lot. It’s pretty much my favorite book.”

A smile rising on his face, the doctor replies, “It’s pretty much _my_ favorite book.”

“I know what you’re doing,” Brianna huffs, looking away sadly. “You’re just trying to distract me until Nina gets here. You don’t have to.”

“What if I want to?” the doctor retorts teasingly. “Ever think of that, Ms. Smarty Pants?”

Brianna’s face remains indifferent, her gaze trained on the doctor.

“So, let’s talk about it. Edmund. I bet you like him the least, right?” Drew smirks.

“Don’t get me started,” Brianna chuckles, looking away.

A smile spreads across the doctor’s face and he laughs lightly, causing Brianna to giggle a bit. She interrupts herself with a ragged cough, turning away to cover her face with her elbow as her chest heaves.

Frowning, the doctor unwinds his stethoscope and presses the end to her chest. “Inhale.”

Brianna does as she’s asked, but has to break off to cough some more.

“Exhale.”

He listens to her now-raspy breathing for a while more.

“Okay, Brianna, I’m gonna have a nurse run a scan on your chest. It’s probably nothing, but we just wanna be safe,” Dr. Alister says, getting to his feet.

“Okay,” Brianna says, her voice raspy. “But, Dr. Alister... can you take me to the scan?”

She’s overwhelmed- she’d already been passed off between four paramedics, two nurses at the hospital, and of course Dr. Alister and the girl Shannon. She doesn’t want to meet anymore new people.

Slinging the stethoscope back around his neck, Drew nods. “Of course. Come on. And, you can just call me Drew.”

Brianna gets to her feet and lets Drew lead her to the scanning room.

They walk by the glass doors of some OR. The doctor who had been on scene with them is standing there, yelling into a phone. Behind her, visible through the glass, are a few doctors crowded around a body on a table.

“Yeah, that’s right. I did call ten minutes ago, and I’m going to keep calling until I hear from Brianna Holt’s case worker!” the doctor insists.

Brianna hears her name and slows, catching the attention of Drew. Looking through the glass, she catches a glimpse of matted blonde hair and-.

“Come on,” Drew says, laying a gentle hand on her shoulder. “This way.”

Brianna reluctantly follows. She tells herself it’s someone else’s bloody body lying on that table, with the same shade of blonde hair as Avery- it’s someone else.

In the depths of her mind, she knows it’s Avery. She also knows that the gauze that’s around her stomach is soaked with too much blood, and that a healthy person’s eyes don’t look so _empty._

She looks away, swallows down her tears, and walks after Drew.

\--

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is essentially what last chapter was, a retelling of the episode with some filled in behind the scenes type stuff. Hope you liked it regardless. Comments and kudos are greatly appreciated! I should be back with a chapter 3 by tomorrow.


	3. No Easy Way

After Drew takes Brianna to the scan, he’s called away by another doctor, and with a rushed apology he asks a nurse to take Brianna back to her room.

“Come on honey,” the nurse says, a hand on the small of Brianna’s back. “Are you hungry?”

Brianna shakes her head.

“Alright, love. I’ll be back to check on you later,” the nurse says, watching as Brianna climbs into her bed.

Brianna nods, and watches the nurse leave. Then, she’s alone. Alone with her thoughts, again.

If Avery dies, Brianna knows she’s going to be tossed back into the system. She’ll hopefully find another foster family – but maybe they won’t be as nice as Avery is. Maybe they’ll be like the DeKristens, or the MacGleyers, or the Jacksons. Maybe they’ll only want her for the benefit money, or just for a few weeks and then, like a new puppy, she’ll lose her appeal and they’ll want her gone. She’ll stuff her meagre belongings into her backpack and be shipped off to the next home, where it’ll all happen over again. Switching schools, switching rooms, switching ‘families.’

She feels panic rising in her throat and she halts her train of thought, reaching over to grab her book and opening it onto a random page. She begins to read.

\--

A while later, the nurse comes back with a sort of vest-looking thing.

“Dr. Alister said this would help with your cough,” she says, beckoning for Brianna to sit up. The nurse fastens the straps of the vest-thing around her and cinches it tight, before giving her a fake smile and walking off.

It’s uncomfortable, but it helps, and Brianna sits back to continue her reading.

Only a few minutes after that, there’s a knock on the door of her room. Drew walks in, a light smile on his face.

“Brianna,” he says, grabbing her attention.

Brianna looks up from her book as he crosses the room to her. Setting down a little cup of water and a plastic dish of pills, he turns to her.

“How’s the chest PT working? Feeling better?” he asks hopefully.

“Yeah, I’m alright.” She looks up at Drew briefly, before turning her attention back to her book.

“Okay...well, your X-rays came back, and you have a small area of pneumonia,” Drew says, showing her the screen of the iPad he’s holding. “That’s what’s been making the breathing harder, but...”

He reaches to grab the pills that he had set down. “You just gotta take this medication, and some...”

He’s taken aback as Brianna tips the container into her mouth, both of the large pills falling onto her tongue. She hands the plastic container back to Drew.

“...And some antibiotics should make the breathing easier.” He passes her the cup of water.

She takes a gulp of it and swallows down the pills, handing the cup back. “Thanks.”

“Yeah,” Drew nods, grabbing the trash and turning to leave Brianna’s room.

 _She’s probably tired,_ he figures. _Might want to get some rest._

“Edmund’s such a turd.” Brianna’s voice sounds and Drew looks over his shoulder, turning around. “Giving up his family like that.”

“A turd?” Drew teases with a smile, tilting his head as he wanders back near to her.

“I guess you could call him a jerk,” Brianna scoffs, looking away bashfully.

Drew sits down on the end of Brianna’s bed, looking up at the battered girl. The cut on her face is stitched up but her cheek is still smeared with dried blood, and she has a massive bruise on her forehead.

“You know, I don’t get why you love him so much.” Brianna states.

“I wouldn’t say love,” Drew ponders. “Yeah, when he first gets to Narnia, he ruins everything. That’s the Edmund I wanna punch in the teeth. But in the end, what does he do? He helps his family kill the white witch. He changes. And I think that’s what makes Edmund not a _turd_. I think that’s pretty cool, don’t you?”

Brianna seems to consider his answer, but then she shakes her head. “No.”

Drew huffs a laugh, looking at her amusedly. “Okay.”

“He has no idea how lucky he is,” Brianna murmurs. “I mean, every kid wants to go to Narnia. When I go to a new foster house, I always check all the closets. Just in case. Do you?”

Drew cocks his head, seeming to consider his answer before nodding. “I’ve spent some time in closets.”

“I bet they don’t have breathing treatments in Narnia,” Brianna contemplates, looking at Drew. “No one’s ever sick there.”

Drew’s about to agree with her, when Shannon appears in the doorway. “Drew, do you have a minute?”

Turning back to Brianna, Drew says, “Yeah, uh, I’ll be right back.”

Brianna sighs and picks up her book again.

\--

Only a few minutes later, Shannon, Drew and Nina, her social worker, all walk into her room. Brianna puts down her book, the cover falls closed – she loses her page. They all look somber, resigned, and Brianna feels her throat tighten with worry.

Drew walks around to the left side of her bed and kneels down next to her, while Shannon and Nina walk to the other side. Nina sits on the edge of the bed, a hand resting on Brianna’s knee.

Brianna looks between them all frantically, their facial expressions telling of the fact that this discussion is going to involve nothing but bad news.

“There’s no easy way to say this,” Drew starts, looking at the teen sympathetically. “Avery isn’t going to make it.”

Brianna’s mouth drops open and she freezes, panic rising up inside her throat. Her gaze drags from person to person, looking for a clue in their face that they’re not serious, that they’re just kidding, that Avery’s going to be fine- that she isn’t going to lose the only person in her life who cares about her.

Their faces all hold steady. Shannon looks like she’s tearing up, Nina’s eyes are pitiful, and Drew’s looking at her with unmasked sympathy and sadness.

“No, she’s not,” Brianna chokes out, very much in disbelief. “She’s gonna be fine, because we can do something. Can’t we do anything?”

She looks to Drew- tears spill over her eyes again and she draws in an unsteady breath.

The doctor swallows heavily, shaking his head. “I wish we could.”

“But...I-I just saw her. She was- she was fine. She...” her voice fades off as the realization sets in.

Everyone in the room is silent. Brianna looks to Shannon, who returns her gaze with glossy eyes. Then to Nina, who shakes her head softly and frowns.

Finally, her gaze flicks back to Drew, and she says softly, “Can I see her?”

Drew hesitates, looking up at the other adults.

Brianna follows his gaze, hurriedly adding, “Just to say goodbye.”

“I’ll go see,” Nina says, patting Brianna’s leg before standing up and walking out of the room. Shannon follows.

Brianna expects Drew to stand up and follow them, to leave her all alone again to drown in her thoughts-.

Drew doesn’t move. He stays there, his gentle gaze trained on Brianna. She expects him to say something silly, a cliché comforting phrase that won’t actually comfort Brianna at all- but he doesn’t. He just sits there, a slight frown on his face.

“It’s my fault,” Brianna starts, her voice trembling.

“Hey, hey-,” Drew rushes to reassure her, but she cuts him off.

“I asked to go get ice cream. If I hadn’t, we wouldn’t have been on the road, and she wouldn’t have swerved to avoid the deer and she wouldn’t be...” Brianna pauses, her breath hitching. “She wouldn’t be dying.”

“Brianna,” Drew says steadily. “This is not your fault. At all.”

She doesn’t believe him. She averts her gaze and stares at the wall numbly, as tears roll down her cheeks.

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3, as promised. I won't be able to get another one-shot (or whatever you'd like to call the one-off stories I often post) up today but hopefully soon! Chapter 4 will be posted tomorrow, however.


	4. No Escape

Nina and Shannon walk back into Brianna’s room only a few moments later. The girl looks up at them, wiping the tears off her face with the back of her hand.

“C’mon,” Nina says, extending her hand to help Brianna out of the bed. “Let’s go say goodbye.”

Drew gets to his feet too, and the four of them walk to the OR where Avery is.

Walking ahead of them, Drew pulls back the curtain that closes the room off. On the operating table lays Avery. Someone is squeezing a bag placed over mouth, presumably giving her air, and another doctor is performing CPR compressions. The only sounds in the room are the huff of the air bag, and the faint beep of the heart monitor.

Brianna walks forward slowly, her mouth still gaping.

Shannon taps her on the shoulder and she turns around. “You can say whatever you need to.”

Brianna turns back to face Avery – lying completely still on the table, pale and looking lifeless.

She reaches her hand out, brushing it against Drew’s, and the doctor takes hold of it. She walks slowly forward, unable to take her gaze off the table.

“Why does she look like that?” Brianna asks, glancing up at Drew. “Can she even hear me?”

“She can,” Drew says with a nod, clenching his jaw to steel his expression- to hold back the surge of emotions.

He releases her hand as Brianna steps farther forward, nearer to her mom’s body.

“Avery?” she starts, voice trembling. “I love you. And I’ll never forget you. You’re the best mom anybody could ever ask for.”

She stands there, lip trembling, tears spilling from her eyes.

“Please...” she murmurs, her voice breaking. “I can’t. I don’t wanna say goodbye. Please don’t make me! I don’t want to!”

A sob tears its way from her throat and she spins, shoving past Nina and Shannon before running out of the OR and off down the hallway.

“I’ll go get her,” Drew says with a sad sigh, striding after the girl.

Brianna doesn’t know where she’s running, she just knows she has to get away from that OR. The OR with her mom on the table, bloody gauze all around her abdomen, snow-white skin and unopened eyes. Her mom dying. Her mom dying, because of her.

She turns corner after corner, brushing past nurses and doctors until she finds a door with the words _Supply Closet_ printed on it. She throws the door open and runs into the room, another cry ripping itself free of her mouth because, once again, there’s no forest- no escape- in this closet, either.

She crosses the room and slides down against the wall, between two metal cabinets, and starts to sob.

\--

It’s a solid ten minutes before Drew finds Brianna. He throws open the closet door and his eyes scan the room, before catching onto the form hunched against the wall.

He shuts the door behind him and walks slowly over to the girl, sliding down and sitting crisscross against the cabinet opposite her. Brianna looks up briefly, her face stained with tears.

“You need to take a couple puffs from your inhaler,” Drew says quietly, handing her the red object.

She does as she’s told, before looking down at the floor and sniffling. “How’d you find me?”

“I checked every closet on the floor,” Drew says softly. “I knew you’d be in one of them.”

Brianna just nods, her gaze still not on Drew. “Yeah, well, I’m still here. No forest in this one.”

“No. That’s the bad part. There never is,” Drew murmurs gently. “I know there’s nothing in the world right now that I can say to make you feel better, so I’m just gonna sit here with you.”

“What am I gonna do without her?” Brianna whimpers after a pause, her lip beginning to tremble again.

“I don’t know,” Drew admits honestly, with a gentle shake of his head.

Brianna sniffles again before lunging forward into Drew’s arms. The doctor wraps his arms around the girl, holding her tight as she cries into his shoulder, her body splayed across his lap. He rubs a hand up and down her back comfortingly, his chin resting atop her head, as he, too, tries not to cry.

“It’s gonna be okay,” he murmurs into her ear, his voice thick with grief and the threat of unshed tears. “It’s not your fault. It’s gonna be okay.”

\--

Drew holds Brianna while she cries into the fabric of his scrub top, while she sniffles and wipes her tears away, and while she falls asleep with her face tucked into Drew’s neck.

He wraps his arms under the crook of her knees and around her back, staggering to his feet with the weight of the girl held in his arms. He takes her back to her room, where he tucks her into the bed, and then pulls up a chair to sit in. It just feels wrong to leave the poor girl all alone after something like this.

So, he sits there for close to an hour. He sits there until his pager beeps, and he’s about to go get someone else to come sit with her when he sees Nina approaching the door to her room.

“Hey,” Nina says as Drew exits the room. “Brianna needs a place for the night, and Kenny said he’d talk to Topher about admitting her.”

Drew nods, glancing at the sleeping girl. He had pulled the covers on top of her, but they’re now currently bunched around her feet as the result of a fitful dream.

“That’s good.” Drew says, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “My shift’s over soon, I’ll come sit with her once I’m done.”

“Perfect,” Nina breathes a sigh of relief. “I need to get to the rest of my kids but I don’t want to leave her.”

Drew nods understandingly. “Alright. Well, I’ve gotta go for now- I’ll be back as soon as I can. Do you want to sit with her while I’m gone?”

“Yes, definitely,” Nina sighs again. “Tough night.”

“Agreed.” Drew sighs before striding off down the hall.

\--


	5. Nightmares

Brianna wakes a good while later, right after the first colors of dawn streak across the sky. She yawns and rubs at her eyes, wincing when her hand bumps against the stitches on her cheek.

Suddenly, it all comes rushing back to her. The crash, the hospital, Avery... the last she remembers, she was in a supply closet with Drew.

Looking around, disoriented, her eyes land on Nina, who’s sat reading in a chair opposite the bed.

“Nina?” she murmurs, catching the adult’s attention.

She puts her book down and stands up, smiling gently as she walks over to Brianna’s bedside. “Hey, sweetie. How you feeling?”

“I’m okay,” Brianna says quietly. “Where’s Drew?”

“He had to go finish up his shift,” Nina says, sitting on the foot of Brianna’s bed. “He said he’d come back soon.”

Brianna nods, looking at Nina. “Okay.”

As if on cue, Drew knocks on the glass door of Brianna’s room. The teen’s gaze finds him, and Nina doesn’t miss the way Brianna’s features relax as soon as Drew walks into the room.

The doctor’s no longer in scrubs, now he’s wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. Held in his hand is a Styrofoam takeout container.

“Good morning,” Drew says, setting the container down on the table near Brianna’s bed. “I got you some pancakes and eggs from the diner down the street, in case you’re hungry.”

Brianna’s stomach growls as soon as Drew finishes his sentence, causing all three people in the room to laugh. Brianna nods, looking up at Drew with a grateful smile.

“Thank you,” she says genuinely, taking the container and opening it. She grabs the fork inside and takes a bite of the scrambled eggs.

“No problem. Do you mind if I sit with you? I have some games on my phone you might like,” Drew offers, glancing at Nina who gives him the second grateful smile he’s received in the last minute.

“I’d like that,” Brianna nods.

“Alright kiddo, I’ve gotta go for now, but I promise I’ll be back tonight, okay?” Nina says, waving at Brianna before exiting the room.

Drew waits for her to leave before he pulls up another chair, resting his elbows on the edge of the bed. “How’d you sleep?”

“It was okay,” Brianna shrugs, using the fork to tear off a piece of a pancake. She tactfully avoids his gaze and Drew frowns.

“Hey. What’s wrong?” he asks, poking her arm teasingly.

Brianna pauses for a moment. “Where am I going to go now?”

“What do you mean?” Drew tilts his head confusedly.

“Avery’s...dead,” Brianna says slowly. “I have nowhere to go. I don’t want to go back to another foster house.”

“Lucky for you,” Drew starts, a smile rising on his face. “We’re admitting you until Nina finds you a new home.”

“Oh,” Brianna says.

“What’s that?” Drew scrunches up his nose, peering at her. “You don’t wanna stay here?”

“No, I do,” Brianna reassures. “I just... It’s weird.”

The doctor nods understandingly, patting her knee reassuringly. “I get that. But hey, you’ll have Nina visiting you a bunch, and Shannon and the nurses, and, me, too.”

Brianna nods. “Okay.”

“Good,” Drew says as the teen continues to pick at her breakfast. “I’m gonna make a phone call really quick, then I’ll be back, and we’ll see about those games.”

Brianna nods, and Drew smiles at her before he stands up and exits the room. He fishes around in his pocket for his phone and clicks on Rick’s contact info, before pressing the call button.

The phone only rings a few times before the man picks up, “Hey, Drew.”

“Hey. Just wanted to let you know that I’ll be at the hospital a bit longer today, there’s this kid...her foster mom died last night and I’m keeping her company,” Drew says, frowning as he recalls the previous night’s events. “I’ll text you when I’m on the way home.”

“That’s terrible,” Rick murmurs. “Alright, no worries. I’ll be home by 5 tonight.”

“Okay. Love you,” Drew says.

“Love you too.”

The phone clicks as Rick hangs up. Drew stuffs it back in his pocket before re-entering the room as Brianna puts the mostly-empty container on her bedside table.

“Who was it?” Brianna asks conversationally.

“Oh, uh- just Rick, my husband,” Drew answers, stuttering a bit.

“Cool,” Brianna shrugs, unfazed.

“Yeah... So, the games?” Drew says.

\--

That’s how the next few days go. Brianna’s pneumonia doesn’t respond to antibiotics, so now they have a real reason to keep her in the hospital. Drew started her on some stronger meds last evening, and they seemed to have helped a little, but he’s still a bit worried.

Drew, Nina, and various nurses that had taken a liking to Brianna are in and out of her room over the next couple days. Nina in the evenings, while Drew’s starting his shift. Drew comes up during his breaks, and when he or Nina aren’t there, a nurse is right outside the door.

Brianna seems to have begun getting over Avery’s death. Though, last night, Drew had walked into her room after his shift to find her tossing and turning on her bed, forehead slick with sweat and her face twisted with fear. He’d woken her up hurriedly, and she’d cried into his shoulder as a result of the vicious nightmare she had just been plagued by.

She’d later confessed that the nightmare was of the crash.

“But I couldn’t get out of the car this time,” Brianna had heaved, tears running down her cheeks. “And Avery was screaming the whole time. And she was bleeding. A lot. And the ambulance never came, you never came!”

Drew had comforted her and read to her until she had fallen back asleep, and then instead of going home, he’d napped in one of the chairs to make sure she wasn’t terrorized by another nightmare.

One night she had thrashed so badly that she’d fallen out of her bed. Drew had been standing outside the room, talking with one of the nurses, but as soon as he heard the crash he had sprinted back inside.

She’d landed on her wrist, breaking it even further, and Drew had to put it in a cast. She’d admitted she’d had another nightmare, and the next night, Drew didn’t leave her side the entire time she slept.

She’d slept soundly that night.

\--

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos & comments appreciated. (:


	6. Turkish Delight

The morning of the fourth day of Brianna’s stay at the hospital, Drew offers to take her outside in a wheelchair.

“Really? Yes, please!” Brianna exclaims, before flourishing dramatically. “I long for the fresh air of the outside world...”

“Alright, here’s your chariot,” Drew says humorously, unfolding one of the hospital wheelchairs.

“Beautiful,” Brianna says jokingly, allowing Drew to help her into the wheelchair.

He spreads one of the blankets over her lap, as it’s a bit breezy out, and then they’re off. He takes her down the elevator and out the back door, so they can cross through the parking lot and eventually come in the front doors to say hello to everyone.

“Can’t we stay out here a little longer?” Brianna asks as they near the front entrance. “I hate being stuck in my room.”

“I know you do,” Drew says. “It’s just what’s best for you. But here, I do have something for you.”

Drew stops pushing the wheelchair and walks around in front of it, kneeling down in front of the girl.

“Better than a parking lot full of sun? I don’t think so,” Brianna says sarcastically, shaking her head at Drew.

“Hmm, don’t be so sure,” Drew says, pulling a plastic-wrapped morsel out of his pocket and holding it up for Brianna to see.

Her face instantly switches into one of joy and she reaches out to snatch it from the doctor. “Wha- is that...”

“Turkish Delight,” Drew confirms. “Just don’t go selling out to the Ice Queen like Edmund.”

“Never!” Brianna says, grinning.

Drew chuckles. “You can have some after your percussion therapy. You gotta wait for me, though!”

“Not now? Man.” Brianna sighs, a smile still on her face.

“Man...” Drew echoes, taking the candy from her. “No, now.”

Brianna goes to snatch it out of his grasp, but he pulls his hand back. The girl begins to laugh at her failed attempt, and Drew chuckles as he puts the candy in his pocket.

“Oooh!” he exclaims, but his smile fades as the girl begins to cough violently. “Let’s get you back. Get you to your breathing treatment.”

Brianna continues to cough as Drew pushes the wheelchair nearer to the doors, emerging upon the crowd of protesting nurses. Brianna’s coughs cease, much to Drew’s relief, and the two of them stop in front of nurse Molly.

“What are they doing out here? And in their regular clothes?” Brianna questions.

“We are on strike, honey.” Molly turns to the girl, handing her a flyer.

“It’s like seeing your teacher at the grocery store,” Drew whispers, leaning down to speak into Brianna’s ear.

“In her underwear,” the girl adds, glancing at the flyer.

“The hospital promised us raises three years ago, and still hasn’t followed through,” Jocelyn pipes up.

“And they always have us working shorthanded,” Heather adds.

“Do you have anything to do with this?” Brianna questions, tilting her head back to look up at Drew.

“I do not, no ma’am. No way. In fact, they’re the real bosses, don’t forget that.” Drew nods at Molly before pushing the wheelchair forward. “We’re all on your side. So, good luck.”

“Thanks, Drew,” a few of the nurses echo.

Topher comes walking out the hospital doors, a smile on his face. “Hey, Bri!”

“Hey, Dr. Toph,” Brianna replies, high-fiving the doctor as he walks past them, towards the nurses.

Drew smiles as he pushes the girl forward.

They enter the hospital, catching the attention of Jordan who’s standing near the empty nurse’s station.

“Hey, Brianna!” the doctor calls, walking over to the pair. “Ooh, I love your jacket. Hi, Drew.”

“Thanks,” Brianna laughs, looking down at the maroon jacket. “Drew got it for me.”

“Oh, lucky you!” Jordan says. “Alright, I’ll see you later. Bye, Drew!”

“Bye!” Brianna waves as Drew wheels her away, chuckling lightly.

Drew takes her all the way back up to her room in just a few minutes, helping her out of the wheelchair and back into the bed.

“Alright, my shift’s gonna start soon, so I’ve gotta run. But I’ll come bring you dinner during my break,” Drew promises. “You need anything?”

“Nope, I’m all good,” the teen says with a smile, grabbing her book off the bedside table.

“Great. Someone will be here in a few minutes to take you to your breathing treatment, alright?” Drew says.

“Sounds good,” Brianna says. “Hurry back. I want to eat that Turkish Delight.”

Drew chuckles, scrunching up his nose as he laughs. “I do too. Alright, see you later.”

Brianna waves and watches him leave, before turning back to her book with a slight smile.

\--

It’s only a few moments later when Brianna hears the loudest sound she’s ever head echo around the building.

The bed shakes and her cup of water rattles off the bedside table. Dust falls from the ceiling and she cries out, shuffling up in her bed against the wall. The lights all flicker off, and the AC grinds to a painful halt.

Then, everything is silent. There’s a slight ringing in her ears, and everything feels like she’s hearing it through a heavy fog. The only thing she can hear is the yelling from the floor below, various voices crying out in pain and horror.

She scrambles to grab her phone off the table, turning it on with shaking fingers and finding Drew’s contact name. She clicks the Facetime button and holds her breath as it rings, panic rising in her throat.

The screams all die out, replaced by intermittent crying, and Brianna feels panic rise up in her throat.

Drew answers the call a few moments later, but before he can say a word, Brianna starts talking.

“What was that?” the girl whimpers, her hands shaking as she holds the phone. “It was so loud!”

“Hey, Bri, it was an explosion down in the ER. Are you alright?” Drew asks, the image of his face blurry on Brianna’s screen.

He’s covered in soot and there’s a smear of blood on his cheek.

“Where are you? I need you,” Brianna says shakily.

“I can’t get to you now Bri, it’s all closed off,” Drew says apologetically.

“I’m scared,” Bri admits. “There’s no nurses, and no doctors. No you.”

“I know,” Drew says, an unrecognizable emotion flashing across his face. “I know. But I already called some of the orderlies who work there, they’re gonna come hang out. I gotta work now, okay?”

“Okay...” Brianna says, still petrified.

“Hey. I’ll tell you what. You can have some of that Turkish Delight. How does that sound?” Drew offers.

“Great,” Bri says. “Except...I left it down there.”

“I’ll get some up to you as soon as I can. I promise,” Drew says.

“Okay,” Bri sighs, looking around her eerily quiet hospital room.

\--

As promised, the orderlies come up to sit with her. She’s silent for the most part, and she knows she’s being a bit rude when she sits on the bed quietly, and only answers the orderlies’ questions with one-word answers.

But she’s still freaked out, still worried about everyone downstairs, and is really missing Drew.

It’s a solid few hours after the bomb blast that Drew actually finds his way up to Brianna’s room.  The teen is silent as the doctor thanks the orderlies before they leave. She stares at Drew, in his soot-covered scrubs with an IV bag hooked into his arm.

He walks over to the bed and sits down on the foot of it with a sigh, an apologetic smile finding its way onto his face.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t get up here sooner,” Drew says, foregoing a ‘hello.’ “I know you were scared.”

Brianna just nods, trying to remain nonchalant. “You have a job. I get it. It’s cool.”

Drew desperately wants to say, “ _But, I think you should come before my job.”_ But he doesn’t. He doesn’t voice the nagging thought in his mind that he and Rick should adopt Brianna- that he desperately wants to adopt Brianna. He doesn’t want the girl to leave his life, and in fact, he’s starting to think he’d like her in it forever.

As he said to Topher, he just thinks she’s so _cool,_ and unique, and intelligent, and special, and downright sweet...

He can’t even begin to describe the guilt he feels for abandoning her when she had been scared. Logically he knew that he had to help the injured down in the ER, but all his heart had been saying was ‘Go to Brianna!’

He shakes out of his stupor, reaching into his scrub pockets to pull out the Turkish Delight.

Bri’s face lights up and she reaches for it, and this time, Drew lets her take it.

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last pre-written chapter I have. That means this likely won't have daily updates anymore, until I binge-write some more. Sorry! My only excuse is that I'm trying to balance school, homework, my horse, and my sleep. It's not working. Anywho...
> 
> Hope you liked this chapter. Comments and kudos are appreciated! <3


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